Music Management 101
by Sailorjj07
Summary: AU, Dacey fic. Music business student Lacey Porter gets an internship at Twisted Records. Her mentor is the manager for none other than Danny Desai, the "Adonis of Rock and Roll." Based loosely off of the manga, Kaiken (Sensual) Phrase.
1. Lesson 1

Music Management 101

By: Sailorjj07

1. Lesson 1: Hot Singers are Usually Jerks

A.n: So after reading Dacey fics for the last three days, I'm pretty sure I've become completely hooked. I have no idea why or what made we want to write this fic, but Lord knows I don't need something ELSE to work on. But everyone's comments were so nice in my one-shot, Good Hair that I decided to just give it a go. The worst thing you guys can tell me is that you hate it, right? For now, I'll make this fic rated T, but I have a reallllly bad feeling that I'm gonna have to push it up to M. I plan on writing lots of hawt, steamy Dacey scenes so hold on to your hats, folks~! This one just might be a doozy, XP Read and Review, people!

Summary: AU, Dacey fic. Music business student Lacey Porter gets an internship at Twisted Records. Her mentor is the manager for none other than Danny Desai, the "Adonis of Rock and Roll." Based loosely off of the manga, Kaiken (Sensual) Phrase.

Disclaimer: I do not own!

"Talking"

'_Thinking'_

**Actions**

(Me!)

The roar of the crowd always made him feel alive. As the bright lights shined down on his face and girls screamed his name at the top of their lungs, Daniel Desai felt like he was the most important person in the world. Of course, he knew that these people loved him for his songs and his voice more than anything else. But that didn't stop the quickening of his pulse and the steady thrumming of his heartbeat at their constant cheers and chants.

On stage, he had no fears. On stage, he was anything and everything he wanted to be. Under the lights, he felt alive.

"I thank every single one of you for coming to my show tonight. It means more to me than the air I breathe. I love each and every one of you," he said into the mic, using his most sensual voice. He blew a kiss to the crowd and two girls in the front row straight up fainted. A toothy grin spread across his features.

"Good night, New York!"

And then the curtain fell.

Danny handed the microphone to an awaiting stagehand, taking the towel that his manager (and aunt) threw at him.

"Great show, Danny. I think we hit the all-time record for number of panties on the stage," Tara Desai said, laughing wholeheartedly. She clapped her nephew on the back as he plopped down in a leather chair. To say he was exhausted was an understatement. He had been on tour for nearly three weeks now, performing sold out, two-hour shows to crowds of 15,000 or more every single night. In nearly a month, he had been to Las Vegas, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Dallas, Denver, and even Seattle.

But he loved this life and everyone who helped him take part in it.

Danny took a large gulp from a bottle of water, before turning and grinning up at his aunt, his dark eyes twinkling mischievously, "What can I say, Aunt Tara? There's a reason they call me 'Adonis'."

Tara laughed again, "Yeah, yeah. Don't forget, you got that face from my brother."

"But don't I use it so well?" Danny asked, fluttering his eyelashes dramatically.

His response was his aunt swatting at his arm, "Hey, your charms don't work on me! Save it for the groupies wanting on you outside."

Danny grinned and wiped the sweat from his brow once again. It was going to be difficult to make it to his tour bus. It always was. Standing up, Danny pulled off his sweaty shirt and dug into his bag for a new one. He wanted a shower, like right this second, but he would have to wait until they got back to the hotel. Though he had a break of a few days before heading off to perform another show, that free time would be spent at the label doing God knew what.

A hat, a scarf, and a pair of sunglasses later, Danny was being ushered into his tour bus by security. Girls were screaming at him from other side of his path, asking for autographs, for attention, for any sort of acknowledgement. He hugged one girl, blew a kiss to a group on the other side of the line and then ran into the bus. He didn't breathe out again until the doors had closed firmly behind him.

"My goodness, Danny. I was afraid I was going to have to come out there and do some damage control." Danny grinned at the sound of Kyle Masterson's voice, who was waiting from them on the bus. Though Kyle was an older man, he did a great job as Danny's head of security. Plus he was the father of his best friend, Jo, and could still protect him from most of the over-excited fans.

Danny removed the ridiculous sunglasses and stretched out on the large couch on his tour bus, "They're just girls, Kyle. I'm sure they wouldn't attack the bus."

"I don't know; when we were in Houston that time and they slashed the tires, I thought for sure we were all going to die in there."

"Some fans are really just that crazy about me, I guess."

Tara plopped down on the couch beside her nephew, going through all the messages on her phone. Danny hummed to himself softly, and stared up at the ceiling of the tour bus.

"Hey Danny, we don't have to be at the label until about noon tomorrow. Looks like you get to sleep in tomorrow!"

Danny pumped a fist in the air, and gave a little cheer, "Sleep sounds awesome right now."

Tara patted his leg, "I know. You work so hard. I'm so proud of you. Karen and Vikram are too."

"Awwwww, look who's becoming all soft on me!"

Tara rolled her eyes and went back to her cell phone "Oh, hey. Here's something else. It looks like we're getting a new intern tomorrow too."

At this, Danny sat up and looked curiously at his aunt, "Another new intern? I thought Jo was our new intern?"

At the mention of his daughter, Kyle spoke up, "According to company rules, she can't work with the same artist as I am. Something about bias since she's my daughter."

Danny turned back to his aunt, "So what's this new intern's name?"

"You'll get to meet her tomorrow. Her name's Lacey Porter."

Danny tasted the name on his tongue, for a moment, "Lacey, huh? Sounds like a stripper."

"Please don't say that to her face, Danny. You're part of the reason why I run through interns like water in the first!" Tara had put down her phone, to give her nephew a stern look.

Danny didn't even flinch, "I can't help it if they all fall in love with me." He laid back down on the couch and stared up at the ceiling again. Danny held his hand up, blocking the overhead light with his fingers.

"Lacey…" he murmured to himself. "What an interesting name."

**The Next Day**

To say she was terrified would be an understatement. Here it was: her hopes and dreams in a single place. Lacey tried not to shiver as she stared up at the Twisted Records headquarters. Here, she would report to one of the biggest showbiz managers in the country and be taken under her wing. Lacey had fought tooth and nail to get this opportunity and she'd be damned if she lost her shot.

She told herself to be prepared for anything and everything as she pushed open the door, and strode toward her destiny.

The lady at the reception desk smiled kindly as she approached, "How can I help you, dear?"

"Hi, I'm the new intern. I'm here to see Tara Desai." Lacey handed the lady her acceptance papers and her driver's license to confirm her words. The woman glanced them over and then handed the items back to Lacey.

"We knew you were arriving today, but I had no idea you'd be so pretty!" The lady cooed, standing up from her chair. Lacey smiled so hard, she was sure her dimple was showing. "Follow me, dear."

Lacey nodded, gripping the strap of her shoulder bag to hide her nervousness as she followed the woman to the elevator.

'_Calm down, Lace. Think. Breathe. You've got this.'_

"You're one very lucky girl, you know." The receptionist said, as she pressed the button for the 10th floor. Lacey lifted an eyebrow and waited for her to continue, "Tara Desai's nephew is in the office today… do you know who he is?"

Lacey bit on her bottom lip. It was a terrible habit of her's. Of course she knew who he was; nearly every woman in America knew who he was, "You mean Daniel Desai? The one they call Adonis?"

"The very same. I swear that man breathes prettier air than the rest of us do." The receptionist giggled girlishly just as the elevator opened, and the two ladies stepped out on the floor. "Here you are. Just go straight down this hallway and you'll find Tara. She's probably in her office or with Danny, in the practice room."

Lacey nodded, "Thanks so much."

The woman smiled again, giving a small wave as the elevator doors whisked her away from view.

Lacey made her way down the hall, straightening her clothes and popping a fresh piece of gum in her mouth. She paused and whipped out a compact to do one last make-up check, before finally refreshing her lipstick. Then she picked up the pace to go find her new boss.

She found Tara standing in another reception area with four desks. Three girls already occupied three of the desks, whereas the fourth one, closest to the practice room door sat empty.

Tara Desai looked up from the mousy brunette she was talking to, and turned in her direction, "Can I help you?"

Lacey removed her right hand from her purse strap, holding it out in greeting "Hi, I'm Lacey Porter. Your new intern?"'

"Oh wow." Tara gave the girl a once over, before shaking her hand. It surprised her that a girl that beautiful wasn't a model or an actress already, "It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Tara Desai."

"Ah, same here." Tara released her hand and gave the girl a longer look.

"Ummm…?" Lacey wasn't quite sure why Tara was staring at her like that, but it was certainly embarrassing.

"Oh sorry, I was just-" The melodious sound of piano interrupted whatever the older woman was about to say, and Lacey turned in the direction of the practice room. "Oh right! Come meet my nephew. You'll be working with him fairly closely, so I can just introduce you two now."

Lacey nodded and followed Tara into the practice room, noticing that the piano playing had stopped.

"I want to taste you…" Came a sing-songy voice from the man sitting at the piano.

Lacey blinked, telling herself she hadn't heard what she had actually heard. If Lacey was of a lighter skin tone, her blush would be evident on her face. This is why she didn't listen to Danny Desai's music - it was like listening to porn.

"Danny, try it in a higher key. Also, make the phrase a bit slower."

The tanned young man turned out the sound of his aunt's voice. He was about to play the melody again, when he turned and noticed the beautiful girl standing behind her. Her long raven hair framed her face with plump, pouty red lips, a perfect nose, and the prettiest set of eyes he had ever seen on a woman.

Danny's dark gaze caught her own and he played a tiny section of the song, singing the lyric while looking directly into the girl's eyes. This time, he tried it with his aunt's suggestion, "I want… I wish… to taste you."

Lacey tried not to gasp as he sang the words directly to her. No wonder they called him "Adonis". Daniel Desai was manly perfection. His beautiful, wavy hair cascaded to his shoulders and matched perfectly with his dark eyes and slender fingers. Long eyelashes framed those gorgeous orbs and Lacey felt her pulse race at the sound of his singing voice.

While Lacey studied him, Danny ended the melody with a fantastic flourish, winking at the doe-eyed beauty.

His unnerving gaze ended just as quickly as it had begun, as he turned to his aunt, "What'd you think about that?"

"It works. It sounds a lot better." Tara noticed that Danny was hardly paying attention to his aunt's response, as he had his gaze wholly on the girl behind her again, "Oh right. Danny, this is the new intern, Lacey Porter. Lacey meet Danny Desai, my nephew."

Danny stood up from the piano and strode over to Lacey. He stopped just in front of her, raking his gaze over her from head to toe. His eyes finally rested on her face, having examined her more closely, "I had no idea a girl with a stipper name could be so lovely."

At first, Lacey was flattered as Danny had complimented her, but then she felt her temper flare up, "E-Excuse me?! Did you just say I have a stripper name?"

"Well yeah, I mean, you're named after fabric. The only thing I can think of when I hear 'lacey' is lingerie. So either your Mom was a stripper, or she just really had a thing for Vicky's Secrets."

Lacey blushed in anger and embarrassment. Who says things like that to people?!

"First of all, my FATHER named me-"

"Oh, that explains it-"

"And secondly, how DARE you insinuate that I am-"

"Definitely a stripper. It's okay, we've all gotta pay tuition somehow." Danny gave Lacey a toothy grin as she glared at him. If only looks could kill.

Lacey turned her back on him, focusing her attention on her new boss, "If you'll excuse me Tara, I'm going to go ahead and excuse myself. Is that empty desk out there for me?"

"Oh right! It is! Here, I'll help you log in to the computer." Tara escorted Lacey from the practice room, not sure what it was that her nephew was trying to pull. What she didn't see was Lacey giving Danny a one-finger salute behind her back as they walked away.

Danny chuckled as the two women walked out. Oh, he was definitely going to enjoy getting rid of this one.

End Chapter 1


	2. Lesson 2

Music Management 101

By: Sailorjj07

2. Strike A Deal

A/n: So it seems jerkface Danny upset a couple of people. I'm not one to shy away from or get upset about con-crit so I will say firstly, thank you to every single person that took time out of their busy day to review. I really appreciate it since I can't know how I'm doing without proper feedback.

However, Danny being rude, crude, or otherwise is just a part of the story and his snarky comments are here to stay, at least for a while. I'd like to remind everyone that this is in an alternate universe where Danny and Lacey have never met before and I like the tension that his not-so-nice comments creates. The Danny we know and love will appear, we just have to get through the immature singer to get there. I'd ask that you guys read this AU fic without preconceived notions but I think that's bound to happen when I'm using characters that have already been established previously. Anywho, thanks again for all the reviews~! Here's chapter 2!

Disclaimer: I do not own!

"Talking"

_'Thinking'_

**Actions**

(Me!)

Tara left Lacey to set-up her computer and get settled while she had a talk with Danny. The way he spoke to her new intern was going to cause all kinds of problems and she definitely didn't want the girl to quit on her first day.

Tara walked into the practice room to find Danny leaning his arm on the piano, head down over the keys. He hummed notes softly to himself, playing random notes to match the sound of his voice.

"Danny, could you be any more childish? You seemed genuinely interested in Lacey just yesterday and today you're acting like she killed your cat." Tara gave her nephew a stern look. Some days, she could deal with Danny's temper with her manager's prowess but today, it seemed she needed to be Danny's aunt. "I know my brother raised you better."

Danny sat up, frowning at the look of disapproval on his aunt's face. His gaze flicked past her, towards the door she had walked through, and then back to her face, "Where is Lacey from? She doesn't really have much of an accent."

"Does it matter? If you keep talking to her the way you do, she'll run back home!"

Danny nodded, his dark eyes clouded with a million thoughts, "She's beautiful, Aunt Tara. Really beautiful." He swallowed thickly, as if tasting the words as he said them. "Girls like her can't be trusted."

"What?" Tara gaped at him, the confusion clear on her face, "Danny, Jo's beautiful too and you get along with her just fine."

"Jo's my best friend. Of course she's beautiful to me. But not like her. She's..." Danny stopped himself from speaking any more, since, in his opinion, he had said too much. In his mind, he could already see Lacey's perfect mocha legs, stretching on for days.

_'No, I made a vow... I need to get her out.'_

"She's...?" Tara pressed, waiting for Danny to finish his statement.

Instead of answering her, however, Danny stood up from the piano and avoided her question entirely, "What do you need a new intern for anyway? Three isn't enough?"

"Danny, we've been through this, one for each singer under contract with me. Since Jo can't work with you and you ran Ashley off, I had to get a new one."

"Ashley was practically stalking me, you know. She was getting jealous of the fans."

"Yeah, yeah, I know." Tara eyed her nephew warily, as if trying to decipher what was going through his brain, "But really, Danny, you've got to stop running all of the interns off. I swear, if Lacey quits, I'm going on a hunt to find a hot male intern who will fall in love with me."

Danny snickered, "Aunt Tara, it sounds like you're trying to hire a boyfriend and not a manager trainee."

**With Lacey**

If Lacey clicked her finger against the mouse any harder, she was sure it would break in half.

Where the hell did that boy get off talking about her name like that? Lacey was a great name, and one that her father had lovingly given her.

Lacey fumed as she set-up her new email and made a picture of her chocolate labrador puppy her desktop's wallpaper.

"Um... You're Lacey, right?"

Lacey turned to see a frizzy haired blonde with a kind face standing in front of her. The girl had a cheerful disposition and was dressed smartly in a pair of loose fitting boyfriend jeans, a pale pink blouse, and a fitted blazer. She reached out her hand and gave Lacey a warm smile.

"Hey! Nice to meet you. I'm Jo Masterson."

Lacey stopped her meticulous destruction of her computer mouse to stand up and shake the other girl's awaiting hand, "Hi. As you guessed, I'm Lacey. Lacey Porter."

"Welcome to Twisted Records, Lacey." Jo giggled and placed her hands behind her back, "So where are you from?"

"Green Grove. It's a tiny town that you've probably never heard of..."

"Nope, actually my older brother is going to graduate school out there! It's suuupper tiny." Jo's easy smile was certainly infectious and Lacey found her mood improving in mere seconds. Maybe things wouldn't be so bad here, after all.

"Hahaha, no kidding. I graduated from high school and got out of there as fast as I could." Lacey sat back down in her chair as Jo leaned up against the top of the desk to chat with her.

"Oh, so a brief introduction of the other girls. The lovely brunette over there with the excellent highlights is Phoebe Daly. Her brother is Tyler Lewis; you know who that is, right? I help Tara with him."

Lacey nodded, knowing exactly who Tyler was. He was great at live performances and his speciality was the acoustic guitar. He was a cutie, but he didn't make girls' panties drop like Danny Desai. Lacey shivered at the memory of the words he sang to her earlier.

_'It was only part of a song,'_ she reminded herself, focusing again on Jo's voice.

"Our shy sweetie over there is Susie Cue, with the dark hair and glasses. She's gonna help Tara with Britny Lance, the pop singer."

Upon hearing her name, Susie gave a tiny wave in their direction, then went back to her work.

Jo continued, "And you will have the great pleasure to work with Danny Desai, the most popular artist in the company right now."

Lacey visibly grimaced, "Ugh, I absolutely do not want to work with him. At all."

Jo laughed outright at Lacey's look of disgust, "You mean you're not his biggest fan?"

"Oh, absolutely not. All he sings about is sex and more sex. If I can't listen to his music with my mom in the car, I probably don't need to hear it. Plus, that attitude!"

Jo's smile of amusement never faded as she let Lacey vent to her, "Uh-oh. Did Danny pick a fight with you already? It's only your first day!"

Lacey nodded, "He told me I had a stripper name."

"Oh nooooo! He needs to chill out."

"I absolutely agree. It's so unprofessional."

Jo nodded and leaned in closer to Lacey, lowering her voice, "Try not to take it personally. He's been like that since Regina dumped-"

"Ahem!"

Both girls jumped and turned in the direction of the practice room. There, as if summoned by their current discussion, stood Danny Desai, with his arms crossed over his chest and an upraised eyebrow as he looked between the two girls. Lacey shot him a glare and immediately turned back to her computer, making a strong effort to ignore him.

"So Jo, I see you met Lacey Lingerie," Danny said with a smirk, leaning his arm on Jo's shoulder. Both Jo and Lacey rolled their eyes, though Lacey refused to even look in his direction.

'He doesn't exist. He's just air. Ignore him,' Lacey repeated the phrase over and over in her brain to try and keep her temper in check. It was only her first day at this internship; she had to hold it together.

"Danny, don't be rude. She's going to be working with you the entire summer, you know? The least you could do is be a little nice." Jo chastised him for his behavior and Lacey mentally gave the girl a high-five.

Danny gave Lacey a sideways glance, a somewhat wary look on his face, "Maybe."

Jo heaved a sigh and pushed Danny's arm off of her shoulder, "Danny, what are we gonna do with you?"

"Well right now, we're going to make him get some rest." Tara came up behind Danny, and gave her nephew a not so polite shove away from the work desks. "Danny, you have dance rehearsal tomorrow morning, so be back here by then, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah." Danny ran up behind Jo and gave her a bear hug as she was making her way towards her desk. Lacey turned around and watched the two, immediately wondering why they acted so familiar with each other. Jo squealed and fought against Danny's grasp, her adorable face scrunching up in displeasure as he said, "Your Dad told me to give you that the next time I saw you. I just remembered."

"Daniel Desai, get out of here!" This time Jo pushed him away, walking quickly to her desk, her pretty face red with embarrassment.

Danny chuckled in amusement, "Fine~! I'm leaving, everyone." He waved over his shoulder as he made his way towards the elevators doors.

"Bye Danny!" The group chorused, minus Lacey. She didn't care if he was staying or going.

Tara focused her attention on Lacey, handing her an appointment book, "So while Danny is gone, I'm going to check on my other singers. I should be back by the time Danny's rehearsal starts, but since you're his intern, I'd best start you on your first task. Here's the scheduling book for Danny. I have a digital copy of this information too, so if you want, I can e-mail that to you as well."

"I would like that very much, please." Lacey responded, looking over the book. For the most part nearly every detail of Danny's days were planned from start to finish, down to how long he would be allowed to sleep each night. "Whoa. This is pretty detailed."

"Of course, it has to be, to completely utilize all 24 hours in the day." Tara leaned over Lacey to turn the page to a list of things to do. "So here's the 'to do' list. These are all things that need to get done, but are basically on the back burner for Danny and myself. If you want, you can knock some of these things out, but you don't have to. Your first assignment then, is to find periods in Danny's schedule where there a blank spots and add some of these tasks in there. Try not to have too many in a single week, and never have more than one in a day."

"Got it."

"Also, before the choreographer and the dancers get here, make sure you set up a drink station in the room. The piano's on wheels so just push it into a corner, out of the way." Tara patted Lacey's shoulder gingerly, "If you can get through today, you can get through the summer. You seem like a smart girl, so I'll trust you until you give me a reason not to."

Lacey liked the vote of confidence that Tara was giving to her so freely, "I won't let you down, I promise."

"I'm sure of it. Hey Phoebe, when you get a second, can you show Lacey where to get the water and ice for Danny's dance rehearsal?"

Phoebe looked up from her computer screen and smiled at Lacey and Tara, "Of course!"

"Great. Come on, Jo, let's go check on Tyler. He's probably just now waking up, ugh," Tara walked towards the elevators with Jo in tow.

"Go kick my brother's butt, Jo!" Phoebe cheered, earning giggles from all the ladies in the room.

**The Next Day**

Lacey was putting 12 bottles of water on ice when Danny rolled into the practice room wearing a pair of gray sweats, sneakers, and a V-neck t-shirt. His hair was tied up in a bun to keep it out of his face and he was bobbing his head to the music playing through a pair of white headphones.

He stopped walking when his dark eyes fell on Lacey's form, and removed the earbuds from his ears.

"What're you doing in here?"

"Tara told me to set up for your dance rehearsal which isn't for another…" Lacey looked down at the watch on her wrist, "Hour. Why are you here so early?"

Danny slid his bag to the back of the room before shoving his hands in his pockets and moving closer to the beautiful girl in front of him, "I like to get extra practice in." He shrugged as if that was all the reason he needed.

"Oh. Well don't mind me." Lacey stated, going back to work. She had buried two bottles into the cooler before she felt Danny's gaze burning a hole in her back.

"Too late. I don't want to practice with you in here. You can just leave the room now."

Two more bottles had made it into the cooler before she halted in her work again, "Excuse me?"

"I said you can go. I don't like people watching me when I practice alone. Besides, what am I gonna do if you get all hot and bothered while watching me?"

Lacey scoffed and turned back towards the water bottles, "Please. Something about you would have to be hot before I got even a little bit bothered." The lie slipped between her berry colored lips so easily. Of course the man was hot! So hot, it made her angry just looking at him.

Why on Earth was he so damn attractive anyway?

While Lacey was in her thoughts, Danny had managed to get even closer to her. At this point he was standing near the end of the table where the tub full of drinks sat, "Oh Lacey Lingerie, you don't have to lie. I already told you I thought you were beautiful when I met you, didn't I?"

"Who says I care what you think?" Feeling her face warm a little bit, Lacey hurriedly put the remaining bottles on ice.

"Do you?"

"Care what you think? No, not really. It certainly won't help me do my job any better." Lacey crossed her arms over her chest, watching Danny closely. For some reason, he had stepped even closer to her, though she assumed it was so they weren't yelling across the room at each other.

"So what if I said I don't want you here? Would you care then?"

"Nope."

Danny watched her carefully to see if her tough girl act would crack. She stared back with just as much scrutiny, daring him to say another word.

"Well I definitely don't want you here. I don't see the point of even having interns; you guys aren't here for longer than a year, anyway." The look of disdain he gave her was enough to make her temper flair but there was something about the way Danny dismissed the importance of her job that really rubbed her the wrong way.

Lacey stepped into his personal space, narrowing her eyes as she jabbed a single finger into his chest. She had dealt with guys like him all through high school and college; she wasn't afraid of his harsh words or ridiculous opinions. Briefly, she noticed his dark eyes widen just a little bit, before he schooled his features into a slight frown. Danny looked down at her index finger on his chest, and then back up at her irritated face.

"You listen to me, you oversexed Backstreet Boy. I don't give a damn, or three, if you want me here or not. I'm here until I get college credit for this job and there is absolutely nothing you can do to make me quit or leave. I have worked too hard for this opportunity and I'm not going to give it up just because you're pissed off that your girlfriend can't be your manager."

Danny took hold of Lacey's finger, pulling her entire hand along with it and grasping it in his own. He tried to ignore the way his chest had warmed from her simple touch as he guided her body closer to his so that there was hardly any space between them. Using his free arm to wrap around her waist, Danny lowered his head next to her ear. Lacey tried to keep her breathing at a normal rate, as her heart pounded in her chest at the close contact.

Was it just Lacey, or had the room suddenly gotten hotter?

"If you're going to touch me, Lacey Lingerie, I'd prefer you did it a little more gently," Danny whispered huskily, in her ear.

Lacey felt her heart skip a beat as she bit down on her bottom lip, flustered. Danny grinned wolfishly, though in the back of his mind, he wondered why Lacey felt so nice in his arms.

"S-Stop calling me that." Lacey murmured, her gaze flitting around the room, as she tried to focus on something, anything, other than him.

The hand that was holding her own moved up under her chin, angling her face so that she had to look at him, "And just what do I get out of this deal?"

Lacey's flustered face gave way to something much more… sinister. Her eyes flashed as if she had caught him in a trap in that instant. The smirk that spread across her face was downright sexy, and Danny felt an odd twinge in his belly, "I'll change your charity work to something less… messy."

Confusion spread across Danny's face as he released his hold on Lacey's chin. He had been trying to coax a blush out of her, but now, the tables had turned. "Messy?"

"Oh right, didn't Tara tell you? You volunteered to clean out America's landfills."

"I what?!" Danny's hands fell away from her entirely, as he stared at her with wide eyes.

"See what happens when you piss off your manager-in-training? I'm in charge of your scheduling now and I decided that your public needs you, Danny Desai! Cleaning America's landfills is a great cause!" Lacey tried to cover a snicker behind her hand, but failed miserably as Danny's face turned from shock to irritation in seconds.

"You change that right now! I'm not going out to clean up trash!"

"Oh but you will. Contractual obligations and all that. Unless you stop calling me by that ridiculous nickname." Lacey shrugged, as if the exchange didn't really matter to her, "Look Danny. I don't know why you're so against me being here, but I'm telling you this now: work with me and we can get through this summer together. I will do my absolute best to make life easier for you and Tara, but you have to let me do my job. Help me help you and we'll both walk away with a lot less stress. Deal?" To finish off her speech, Lacey held out her hand, waiting for Danny to agree to her bargain.

Danny narrowed his eyes at Lacey's outstretched hand, but took it anyway, "Fine. You've got a deal, Lacey."

"Good. I'm glad we could work something out." The smiled that graced Lacey's face was like a breath of fresh air for Danny. He wanted to touch the adorable dimple that appeared in her cheek, but suppressed the urge. The two shook hands for much longer than was necessary before Lacey had the good graces to remove her hand from his.

_'Seriously, what is wrong with me?'_ Danny didn't return Lacey's smile, only turned to go get something out of his bag.

With her job finished, Lacey made her way towards the exit, when Danny's voice stopped her.

"Wait. You promise to get me out of the landfill thing?" Danny questioned, watching her face carefully for any sign of trickery.

"I'll go cancel it now, Danny."

Danny breathed a sigh of relief, fishing an MP3 player out of the bag and connecting it to the stereo at the back of the room, "Thanks."

"Yep! No problem." Lacey's hand was on the doorknob, but once again Danny stopped her.

"Oh and Lacey? I'm not sure who you think my girlfriend is, but just so you know," Danny waited until Lacey was facing him fully to give her a sizzling, sexy smirk, "I don't have a girlfriend."

Lacey felt her heart stutter once again. Without responding to him, Lacey strolled out of the room as quickly as she could, just as music began to pour through the speakers.

Lacey plopped down at her desk and immediately put her head down. She was caught between congratulating herself, screaming, and blushing like a high schooler. Her little threat had gotten Danny's attention, just liked she had hoped it would, even though it was a total lie.

But his admission about his relationship status left her feeling completely confused.

_'If he and Jo aren't boyfriend and girlfriend, then what are? And why the hell do I even care?'_

Sitting up, Lacey shook her head and pushed her hands against her cheeks. She patted her face and took a deep breath, releasing it quickly as she said, "Back to work!"

Phoebe and Susie just laughed at the new girl's antics, each stopping in their work to smiling at her approvingly.

"Well, it looks like things just got a little more interesting with you around here, Lacey Porter." Phoebe said, while Susie nodded quickly in agreement.

Lacey laughed, even though she wasn't quite sure if that was a good thing.

End Chapter 2


	3. Lesson 3

Music Management 101

By: Sailorjj07

3. Close Quarters

A/n: Oooh maaaannnnnn. I'm really excited for this chapter. I have soooo many ideas for this fic and I want to try and include every single one. I know that will be hard to do without jumping all over the place, so hopefully I can pull it off. This would be sooo much easier if I could write the story as a song fic, but since those aren't allowed on , I'll try to paint a picture to the best of my ability. THANKS FOR ALL YOUR REVIEWS~!

Disclaimer: I do not own!

"Talking"

_'Thinking'_

**Actions**

(Me!)

He swore she was doing it on purpose.

Everything she did made him so aware of her presence, and it was extremely aggravating.

If she crossed those endless mocha legs one more time...

_'She's definitely doing it on purpose.'_

Danny closed his eyes and pushed out a breath of air. He needed to focus. He couldn't keep glancing her way throughout dance practice. They were already 30 minutes in and the session was on a downward spiral to disaster.

It all started when Tara had asked Lacey to join them for practice. The two women sat in folding chairs at the front of the room, so that they were out of the way. Danny had been fine when the routine began, as he started off facing a different direction. However, when he turned to face the "audience", he caught full view of Lacey's beautiful brown eyes and her gorgeous, very visible legs. It was a train wreck from there.

Really, he felt bad for the young lady that was chosen to dance the lead with him. The dancer was beautiful, toned, and curvy in all the right place. But he completely ignored her.

His gaze continued to fall on the dark haired beauty in front of him and it was destroying his concentration as he caught himself staring and completely missing steps in the routine.

_'It's the skirt,'_ he told himself, _'Its gotta be that damn skirt she's wearing.'_

He hadn't noticed it during their conversation earlier but Lacey was sporting a red, knee length tartan pencil skirt and a black top. He had immediately noticed her attire when she had a seat at the front of the room with his aunt, with her legs on full display.

"Danny, you missed a step," his partner whispered, as he wrapped his arms around her and swayed to the music. Danny cursed softly as the girl turned and faced him, touching his face softly and looking up at him with understanding eyes. "Hey, don't worry about-"

"Stoppppp~! Danny, you're really not supposed to look at the love of your life like that. Geez, going by the look on your face you'd think she forgot to wear deodorant today!" Tara sighed loudly and stood up, ignoring Lacey's terrible attempt at covering her giggles with a cough. "Let's take a break, shall we?"

Danny nodded, releasing the girl and plopping down on the floor. He stretched his arms high over his head and closed his eyes, trying to will away any thoughts of Lacey Porter. He needed to get this right. He had to focus.

"Danny, you wanna tell me what's going on with you today?" Tara could tell something was up with her nephew, though she didn't know what. Lacey had assured her earlier that she and Danny were no longer at odds with each other, but Tara was beginning to wonder just how true the girl's words had been.

Danny opened his eyes, a curious expression falling on his face, "What makes you think something is wrong?"

"You're missing steps. You look like you're completely turned off by Marina getting within five feet of you."

"No, I'm just a bit frustrated is all."

"Oh? By what?"

Danny gave his aunt his signature smirk, as a lie flowed from his lips smoothly, "Honestly, I just didn't want to come in for practice today. I was sleeping so well!"

"Well Danny, you're going to have to wake up and join the rest of us. I know you know this routine, you've done it a million times already."

"I know, I know."

Danny glanced past his aunt to see Lacey's chocolate brown eyes on them. As soon as their eyes met, she averted her gaze, but only for a few moments. When she slowly turned to look back in his direction, he swore he could see her blushing, as he caught her watching him. Lacey nervously bit down on her bottom lip, and Danny felt his heart flutter unexpectedly.

"Hey. Lacey."

Her eyes widened a little as she looked back up at him, then narrowed suspiciously as she stood up from the chair, "Yes Danny?"

"Could I have a bottle of water?"

She nodded, and grabbed a bottle from the tub of ice she had set up earlier, walking over to Danny as his aunt walked away to talk to the other dancers. Handing him the water, Lacey tried to ignore just how damn hot he looked with his hair up in a bun and sweat on his body.

Danny accepted the water gratefully, immediately opening the bottle and taking a drink.

"You know if you angled your foot to the right just a little bit more, you would have nailed that last segment."

Turning up to look at the beautiful brown goddess in front of him, Danny gave her a look of confusion, "What are you talking about?"

"You missed a couple of steps. Earlier," and she was doing it again, that adorable, seductive as hell, lip biting thing and it was quickly becoming one more thing to drive him crazy, "I mean it wasn't all that noticeable and you recovered really well but-"

Danny stood up, twisting the cap back on the water bottle in his hand. So Lacey was a fan of his? For some reason, he actually hoped she had gone to one of his concerts, "Have you seen me perform before?"

"No, but I took dance for a long time, I could just tell-... I'm sorry. I shouldn't be saying anything at all." Lacey ran her fingers through her lovely hair and Danny sighed because he wanted to too.

"No, finish what you were saying. You could tell?"

"Well yeah. You've done the routine about six times now."

Danny blinked as the wheels turned in his head, "You learned the entire routine after seeing it… six times? Are you serious?"

Lacey's gaze drifted to the ground, embarrassment clear in her voice, "Umm… Yeah…"

Danny didn't waste another minute. He grabbed Lacey's hand and pulled her behind him, to where his aunt stood with the choreographer.

"Danny, wha-?" Tara started, but Danny shook his head and promptly cut her off.

"Let Lacey dance with me." He wasn't sure why or how or even if this would get Lacey fired, but for some reason, he really wanted to see. He wanted to find out if Lacey was lying or telling the truth, and most of all, he wanted to see her dance.

"Let her-?"

"What?! Danny, no, I can't-!" Lacey started to protest, but Danny would hear none of it.

"But you just said you know the entire routine, right?" Danny turned to her, not realizing that they had been holding hands the whole time. Lacey did however, and released her hand from his grasp.

That was the third time they had held hands in a single day.

"Well I did, but-!"

"Then let's change things up, shall we?"

Lacey couldn't tell if Danny was being playful or vindictive. She felt like it was a combination of both.

Twenty minutes later, Lacey strolled back into the room in a pair of yoga pants, sneakers and a tank top. Thank goodness she had thought to leave her workout clothes in the car, otherwise she would have been in a terrible predicament.

"Lacey, are you sure you want to do this? You don't have to if you don't want to," Tara told her as Lacey sat back down in her chair to tighten her shoe strings.

"No, it's okay. Danny was sort of…"

"Excited?" Tara asked, understanding exactly what the girl meant.

"Yeah. I guess he really does just want to try something different." And since they were trying to get along with each other, it would be best for her to do this, as a way to extend the olive branch of peace.

"Well, just know that you don't have to impress anyone."

Lacey nodded, tying her hair up into a ponytail, and then bending her body forward, in a stretch.

_'Why in the hell did I agree to this? Danny doesn't even want me around!'_

Trying not to dwell on their earlier spat, Lacey shook the thoughts from her head, standing up so she could stretch a little more. It seemed like everyone in the room was watching her, but she was a little too nervous to care. Why had she even opened her mouth?

"So did you want to dance with everyone or just you two?" The choreographer asked, looking at Danny.

A heated gaze passed between the two of them, as they both answered in unison, "Just us."

The silence in the room was deafening.

Lacey finally finished her stretches and moved to the other side of the room, away from Danny. The routine played out like a scene in a movie. A guy spots a beautiful girl and when she catches sight of him, she falls in love on the spot. She follows his every move, hoping for his love and attention to the point of near obsession. Eventually, the guy starts to have feelings for the girl.

Lacey had enough time to take a slow, deep breath before the music began. As the base poured through the speakers, she started rocking her hips to the music and began the routine.

For the first half of the song, Danny's main focus was to watch her. He sang along to his own music, as Lacey moved her hips to the beat, attempting to get his attention.

She was a great dancer, he thought, though his eyes were entranced with the way her body moved in time to his music. As Lacey made her way closer to where he stood, Danny realized how her steps were executed with amazing precision and poise.

In the back of his mind, Danny wondered what type of dance she had practiced in, but all of that faded away when Lacey stepped in front of him, dropping her ass low to the ground. Making sure he could feel her rear firmly pressed against him, she slowly brought herself back up to a standing position. The moment her hands touched his body, a knot formed in Danny's stomach and he realized that his suggestion to dance with Lacey was a bad idea.

If Lacey simply watching him was an annoying, yet satisfying adventure, this dance was a sweet, slow and painful torture.

But Danny refused to give in to his more base thoughts, and just followed Lacey's lead. They moved in time with each other, their bodies flowing and melding against one another with the music.

Lacey felt like she was on fire, from head to toe. Danny's hands were everywhere; her waist, her hands, her neck, her face. Of course, every touch was perfectly crafted into the routine, since they were supposed to give the appearance of blushing new lovers, but his eyes were too dark, his face was too handsome and when Danny involuntarily licked his lips, she damn near lost it.

She never should have agreed to this.

The door to the practice room opened and Jo stepped in with Tyler Lewis beside her. The two of them quietly walked over to where the rest of the group sat watching, fixated on the couple in front of them.

After a moment, Tyler turned to Jo, nodding his head in Lacey's direction, "Who's that chocolate covered delight with Danny?"

Jo giggled, turning to watch Danny's face as he focused wholly on Lacey. The atmosphere in the room was pretty intense, but what made her pause was the look on her best friend's face. He was completely oblivious to the rest of them in the room - though his dancing was just as on point as Lacey's.

"She's the new intern, Lacey Porter. I didn't know she could dance though!"

"Danny wanted her to try it out," Tara said, finally looking away from the two in front of her. She shifted her gaze from them completely, suddenly feeling like she had intruded on something that wasn't for her eyes.

"Oh? What for?" Tyler questioned, though if he had to guess, it'd have something to do with Lacey's pretty face.

"I don't know exactly."

Anything else that Tyler was about to say was covered by thunderous applause as the song came to a close. The embrace that Danny was unable to act out with Marina before was taken to a whole new level with Lacey in his arms. The two had ended on an intimate note, their faces only a breath apart when the applause began.

The magic between them was shattered. Danny and Lacey released each other quickly, each looking in a different direction from the other without saying much.

Jo was the first person to run up to them, smiling. She grabbed each of their hands in one of her own, grinning at them both, "That was amazing!"

"I agree," Tara replied, walking up behind Jo. She watched Lacey glance at Danny out of the corner of her eye, before she averted her gaze. "Lacey, I had no idea you could dance like that."

"I was on the dance team in college, and I was a cheerleader in high school." Lacey murmured, though she wasn't sure why her voice sounded so… husky. She cleared her throat and tried again, "I was also a member of a local dancing studio from elementary school to about high school."

"So why didn't you pursue a career in dance?" Jo questioned, releasing Danny and giving Lacey her full attention. As soon as Jo let go of him, Danny took off, not even bothering to give an excuse as he quickly left the room.

Lacey followed his movement with her eyes, but didn't say anything. She just heaved a sigh and turned back to Jo, "Dancing is like… a way of releasing pent-up emotions. So I didn't want to turn my stress reliever into a stressful career, if that makes any sense."

Jo nodded eagerly, understanding exactly what she meant, "I'm the same way with art!"

**With Danny**

He felt supremely stupid for hiding in a supply closet, but he had to get away from that room, and the people in it. He never should have suggested that Lacey dance the routine with him - it had been a bad idea.

Now, he wasn't sure how he was going to be able to last an entire summer with her. Being civil with Lacey was one thing; that was easy. She wasn't bad to look at and she has a good attitude, for the most part. But now he had held her…Touched her…

Sliding to the floor, Danny ran his fingers through his hair and groaned out loud. He could still smell her damn shampoo in the air.

_'This is not good,'_ he thought to himself, putting his hair back up in a bun. Lacey had yanked the ponytail holder out during their dance, (which was absolutely not part of the routine) though she discreetly put it back on his wrist when the clapping had started.

The last time Danny felt this attracted to a girl, she left him ripped to pieces. He didn't trust his own judgement with females, especially after he had made a fool of himself before.

Staring down at his hands, he sighed loudly as his thoughts began to veer off course, and back to Lacey. She had thoroughly seduced him with her eyes alone, and he couldn't think about anything else but her perfect body in his arms.

Sighing again, he leaned his head back against the door and forced himself to calm down. He was getting all hot and bothered over this situation for no reason, he was sure. There was no way Lacey was even affected by what had transpired between them; he could tell, since she was able to engage in an everyday conversation as if nothing had happened.

Just as he started to stand up, a knock sounded on the other side of the door.

"Danny?" Lacey's voice flitted in between the cracks in the door, and he found himself stepping further away from her. He stayed silent, glancing down at the lock on the door and softly clicking it in place.

Lacey knocked again, "Hey… You okay?"

Not saying anything, Danny crossed his arms, staring at the door as his mind raced to make a choice. He could answer her and tell her how he was feeling, about all the weird emotions that ran through him after that dance, or he could stay quiet, and make her think he wasn't actually in there.

He chose the latter.

A few breathless moments passed before Danny heard the shuffle of Lacey's footsteps as she walked away. He assumed she had gone to change into her work attire since they were finished with practice.

Danny waited five more minutes before opening the door… and almost running over Lacey, who sat beside the door frame.

"It's rude to ignore people," She said as she stood up, a flash of irritation lighting her eyes.

Danny gave no reply, as he crossed his arms and tried to walk past her. Reaching out her hand to stop him, Lacey touched his shoulder gently, "Danny, did I… are you angry with me about something?"

Though he had stopped walking, he wouldn't face her at all, "Just stay away from me."

"What? Are you still upset about earlier? Danny, I-"

Danny shook his head, "I'll ask if I can switch interns with someone. I can't work with you."

Grabbing his wrist, Lacey turned Danny around to face her. Realizing they might make a scene in the hallway, she pulled him back into the supply closet, closing the door none-too-quietly behind them.

"Danny, you can't possibly be doing that 'I don't want you here' crap again. I'm not having it." Lacey's brown eyes regarded him angrily, her temper flaring. What was with this guy and bossing her around?

"Lacey, I…" Danny frowned, not really sure how to explain himself. He didn't really want to tell her that his fingers ached to touch her sinfully delightful skin and beautiful hair.

"No Danny, whatever you're thinking, just stop. I told you already you won't get rid of me and I meant that. I'm here to stay. If you want to avoid me then feel free to do so, but-!"

Danny's dark eyes practically glowed as he stepped into Lacey's personal space and pushed her up against the door. She bit her lip when his hand landed right next to her head, preventing her from looking at anything else but him.

"If I stop thinking, there'll be nothing to stop me. Is that what you want?"

Lacey wasn't even sure how to answer him, as her heart pounded wildly in her chest. Even though his words sounded like he was speaking to her harshly, his actions betrayed him. He touched Lacey's face gently, running the pad of his thumb across her lips and it was like they were dancing all over again.

Lacey frantically searched Danny's gaze for the meaning of his actions, and found herself blushing from what she saw there. Danny's hand stilled and then dropped to his side, as he forced himself to take a step back from her. This was too much, way too soon, and even he was shocked at just how quickly his control was slipping.

"If you know what I mean, then move out of the way."

Numbly, Lacey stepped away from the door so that Danny could exit the closet. When the door closed softly behind him, she sank to the floor, holding her hand to her chest. In that moment, he had been too hot for words. Touching her own fingers to her mouth, she realized slowly that he had left her trembling from his touch alone.

Now she saw why he wanted space between them. They never should have danced together before.

"Just how am I supposed to get through this summer?"

End Chapter 3


	4. Lesson 4

Music Management 101

By: Sailorjj07

4. The Visit

A/n: Wow! I am seriously surprised at the love you guys are sending my way! I really can't thank you enough. I'm super excited for this chapter because it's gonna have more fluff. Who knows, we might even get a kiss out of these two, XP

Disclaimer: I do not own!

"Talking"

_'Thinking'_

**Actions**

(Me!)

Lacey sighed again for about the third time that day. She was really bummed for some reason, and had been for a while now. If she could pinpoint her slowly growing unhappy mood, she would assume it would have something to do with Danny.

_'But that's just insane, isn't it?'_

If Lacey was honest with herself, she'd known for a while now that her negative mood was because of him. It started with the cold shoulder he had given her for the remainder of the week, keeping true on his promise to stay away from her. Danny made sure that their paths never crossed after their "closet encounter" going so far as to visit the company late in the evenings when she had already gone home for the day.

The week after that, Danny was back on tour, flying to three cities in a matter of days. Lacey had been asked to stay behind, since she needed to renew her passport before she had clearance to travel with them.

"Even though Danny is performing in the States right now, the final stretch of his concerts will be outside of the US, in other countries. We can take you with us then, when we'll need more help," Tara had told her, with a reassuring pat on the shoulder.

So there Lacey sat, with a highly sensitive unresolved issue, for two weeks.

"Lacey, you okay?"

Lacey turned to see Jo's concerned gaze over the top of her desk, a small smile gracing the frizzy headed girl's features.

"Of course! I'm doing just fine," Lacey plastered a smile on her face, and that seemed to appease Jo, if only just a little.

She returned Lacey's smile with a cheerful one of her own, returning to her work without another word.

Lacey sighed again and glanced at her cell phone. As if on cue, the electronic device began to vibrate on her desk. Tara's name flashed across the screen for a brief moment so she pressed the answer button quickly, "Hey Tara, what's up?"

"Hey Lacey! Danny and I will be back early Wednesday, so I need you to do me a favor and pick up some groceries for Danny tomorrow. They've already been ordered so all you have to do is pick them up and drop them off at Danny's. Ask Jo for the spare key."

"Got it! Anything else?"

"Yeah, bring an umbrella. I hear it's supposed to rain!"

Lacey giggled, a smile spreading across her features at Tara's light-hearted tone, "I'll make sure to bring two, just in case."

"Good! See you Wednesday!"

Lacey hung up the phone with a better attitude and a more positive outlook on her week.

_'I wonder what Danny's house looks like?'_ She mused, as she went back to sending e-mails to Danny's fanclub members.

**The Next Day**

It took Lacey about 30 minutes to reach Danny's townhouse. It was in a quiet, nondescript neighborhood, in a place that Lacey never would have looked at twice. She mentally applauded Danny for his discretion - it probably drove the paparazzi nuts trying to find out where he lived.

Lacey juggled the five grocery sacks in her hands while fitting the key into the lock. The windowed entry door swung open silently, and Lacey stepped into Danny's entryway parlor. The room was painted in a cheery, soft yellow that reminded Lacey of flowers. There were a few couches and tables set up around the room, some with pictures of Danny and other people.

Lacey shut the door behind her and made her way up the staircase to her right. Tara had told her that the kitchen was on the second floor of the house, so that she would find it easily. As Lacey took her time to walk through the stairwell, she took in the full view of Danny's house. He had awards hanging from the walls for his music, plaques, and even gold and silver records. Lacey stepped in the kitchen and tried not to let her jaw drop.

Danny's kitchen was nothing short of lovely. It was welcoming and warm with stainless steel appliances, marble counter tops, and an adorable breakfast nook that sat beneath a lovely bay window. Beside the sitting area was a set of French double doors which led, presumably, to a patio.

She would love to cook in here every day.

Locating the fridge, Lacey placed all the bags on the counter-top and started putting the frozen and refrigerated items away. She could get the other stuff out of the car later.

Humming to herself, Lacey casually glanced at the items Danny had ordered for his house. It was the usual stuff: milk, eggs, various cheeses. She had to admit she respected his ice cream selections though. Caramel Cookie Dough, Triple Berry Chocolate Chunk, and Green Tea gelato all sounded extremely sweet and delicious.

Giggling softly to herself, Lacey placed each item in the freezer, stacking the containers on top of one another.

"What are you doing here?"

Lacey's heart leapt in her throat as she gave a startled yelp and quickly closed the freezer door. There, staring at her with a frown on his face stood Danny Desai, wearing nothing but a towel, his hair unbound and damp.

Lacey gaped at him for a moment, her gaze traveling over his form before she had time to stop herself. Her eyes just couldn't get enough of his tanned, taunt abs, and his perfect arms.

"Are you going to answer me or just keep staring?" Danny's devilish smirk did nothing to quell the heat rising to Lacey's face. In response, she peeled her eyes away from him, turning her back so that he was completely out of view.

"I… Tara said you guys wouldn't be back until Wednesday, s-so she asked me to stock up your fridge."

"Oh?" As if to confirm her words, Danny's gaze fell on the grocery bags that sat atop his kitchen counters, before turning back to Lacey's perfect… shaking his head, Danny tried to focus on just her back, "She must have given you Jo's key."

Lacey nodded, willing herself to stay focused, "Yeah."

"...Is this everything?"

Twining her fingers together, Lacey shook her head, and bit down nervously on her bottom lip, "No, there's a bit left in my car."

"Okay." Danny nodded, then remembered that Lacey couldn't see him. He smiled ruefully, "Let me get dressed and I'll come help you."

As Danny turned to leave the room, Lacey finally faced him, "Hey… ummm, Danny?"

"I… er…" Lacey hesitated, before throwing caution to the wind, "It's nice to see that you're doing okay." She followed her words with a dazzling smile that made his heart throb. Having said her piece, Lacey scurried away, mumbling something about going to grab more bags from her car.

Danny stared at the place where she had stood for a moment, the unexpected pounding in his heart surprising him. Was he blushing? His face certainly felt warm. A lazy smile spread across his face as he made his way from the kitchen through the living room and to his bedroom in the back of the house.

By the time he was done getting dressed, Lacey had gotten all the bags from her car and cluttered the counters with them. She had finished putting all of the cold items away and was working on breads and pantry goods.

"Umm… I wasn't sure where everything went, so just tell me and I can get out of your hair." Her brown eyes fell on him as he entered the kitchen again, and he smiled at Lacey in amusement.

"Have you eaten yet?" His words caused her to halt her movements, as she looked up at him, confusion written on her face.

"Well no, but-"

"Good. Let's put this stuff up and have lunch." Plucking a cereal box from her hands, Danny began opening cabinets and pulling out drawers while Lacey watched him.

What the hell was going on? Danny had said he didn't want to see her right? He had even gone so far as to avoid her for an entire week!

So what was with the nice guy attitude now?

"I don't think that's a good idea." She stated skeptically, placing a bag of cookies in one of the drawers.

Danny's hands stilled for a moment before he went back to putting boxes in the cabinet, "You're not hungry?"

At the mention of food, her stomach grumbled a bit, and they both laughed.

"That's not it but…" Walking over to where Danny stood, Lacy leaned against the island across from him, an eyebrow arching into the air "I thought you didn't want to see me or work with me anymore?"

Keeping his back to her, Danny placed his hands on the countertop. He wanted to turn around and tell her how she had been on his mind every single day since he met her. He wanted to admit to her that he regretted not kissing her in that closet. Instead, he tightened his grip on the counter, restraining himself.

"I thought so too."

Lacey frowned, not believing him for a second, "Oh, so I'm just supposed to believe that in two weeks you had a sudden change of heart?"

"Do you?" He closed his eyes, running his hand through his lovely hair and breathing deeply.

_'Don't touch her. Don't look at her. You hardly know this girl, Danny. She's just another pretty face.'_ Danny tried to convince himself to be still, in Lacey's silence. He had played this scenario over and over in his mind more than he would like to admit. The invisible string pulling him towards her - to touch her and feel that spark he felt the first time he danced with her was overwhelming his senses.

But every steel wall in his mind crumbled when Lacey placed her hand on his shoulder. He turned and grabbed her hand immediately, words tumbling from his mouth before he could stop himself, "I'm too attracted to you."

Lacey was taken aback by his words, to say the least, and she stared at him with wide, surprised eyes, "You… w-what?"

Instead of answering her, he ran his thumb across the top of her hand, staring up into her beautiful brown eyes.

"You're so beautiful, Lacey Lingerie."

It was like a record player was brought to a screeching halt, "Really Danny? I thought we had buried that horrible name!"

Grinning from ear to ear, Danny trapped her between his arms against the counter, "You know, when someone gives you a compliment, you're supposed to say thank you."

Pouting, Lacey looked away from his terribly handsome face, tugging on a lock of Danny's hair instead, "How about this? ...You're not totally unattractive yourself, Danny Desai," she said, as she stuck her tongue out at him, feeling her cheeks growing warm.

She had to admit, she didn't mind this, whatever it was. She enjoyed the warmth she felt from his body directly in front of her's.

Her stomach growling again interrupted the hazy warmth that had covered them. Danny released her, chuckling loudly as he grabbed the remaining boxes and bags on the counter behind Lacey, "Well let's finish this up and feed that monster in your belly, shall we?"

**After Lunch**

"We have to get you an interview with a homeowner's magazine or something! You have an amazing kitchen, Danny, and you actually use it!" Pouring herself another glass of lemonade, Lacey felt her smile widen as Danny grinned appreciatively at her compliment.

"It's not like I made anything super amazing," Danny said, popping a handful of chips into his mouth. "Paninis are easy."

"For who? Ha, I'd be lucky if I didn't set the bread on fire," Lacey giggled, taking a sip of her drink.

"Oh, I doubt you're that bad of a cook." Danny's obsidian orbs watched Lacey as she took generous gulps of her drink.

Her lips were wonderfully distracting.

"It's not that I can't cook, I'm just horrible with baked goods. It's like I'm genetically unable to make anything involving bread or toast."

Danny smiled at her, a chuckle escaping his mouth, "What? I don't believe you."

"Haha, seriously! I once made toast and set the kitchen on fire! And don't get me started on the time I helped my cousin make bread from scratch!"

Danny's chuckle turned into full blown laughter and Lacey felt her heart flutter at the wonderful bass in his voice. She marveled at the lopsided grin covering his features and felt her cheeks warming again.

_'He looks so handsome with an actual smile on his face.'_

And for some reason, Lacey took pride in the fact that she was the one who put that smile there.

"Would you like to see the rest of the place?" Danny asked, when he had finally sobered up from his fit of chuckles.

"Oh, I would love to."

"Awesome! So here's my kitchen-"

Lacey stood up from the table, swatting at Danny playfully, "You're so lame."

Danny laughed again, taking Lacey's hand, "Let's start from downstairs. Don't be afraid, okay?"

"Afraid of what?"

"Well, we're going in my basement."

Lacey gave an exaggerated gasp, "Oh no! You're not a serial killer are you?"

The wicked smirk that spread across his face made Lacey feel weak in the knees, "All my victims come willingly."

Lacey swore she heard her ovaries explode. Shaking her head, and trying to keep her mind out of the gutter, Lacey let Danny lead her down two flights of stairs and into his basement.

The room was decked out from front to back. In the middle of the room sat a pool table, while a nicely sized bar sat at the far back wall. Against the slanted wall near the staircase was a PS4 and a giant TV with multiple bean bag chairs littered around it. To finish the room off, a dart board was mounted near the bar.

"So this is your relaxation room," Lacey said, in an approving voice.

"Yep. I thought about putting a Jacuzzi in here but figured it was better to have it outside."

"Well yeah what if you want to-"

She cut herself off. She could just imagine all the things she could do to him in a Jacuzzi and...

"I-I mean, it'd probably mess something up, you know all that water in an underground room."

Danny nodded, leading her back up the stairs, "And you already saw the parlor. There's a study down that way," he pointed down the hall when they reached the landing, then took Lacey back to the kitchen, "And my kitchen! Again. Behind that is my living room and my bedroom."

"Uh-oh. You're showing me your bedroom? Let me guess, there's clothes everywhere, right?"

"Haha, you saw my kitchen! I'm not here often enough to make it messy, unfortunately."

Lacey nodded - Danny probably lived most of his life in suitcases.

"Wow, is that a chaise?" Giggling Lacey stretched out on the comfy couch, laying her head back.

Danny's eyes zeroed in on the stretch of skin that was exposed from the bottom of her shirt. His fingers itched to touch her.

_'Stooooooop. Pay attention to something else...'_

"Your belly button is pierced?" Unable to resist, Danny's fingertip grazed the silver bar at the top of Lacey's belly button.

She shivered and sat up, feeling a little lightheaded, "Yes, but don't tell my Mom that! She'll flip!"

"Haha, 21 years old and still afraid of your Mom?"

"Danny, you've never met my Mom. They call her the Ice Queen for a reason."

Danny took Lacey's hand once again, helping her up off the couch, "You can only take a peek in my room."

"Whaaaaat? I paid for a full tour, didn't I?" Lacey was grinning so hard her dimples were showing.

"Ah, it's so hard to say no to a beautiful woman." Danny feigned a loud sigh and opened his bedroom door, "Really, it's nothing special."

But Lacey wasn't pay much attention to him anymore. Danny's room was black and grey from the sheets to the curtains that hung along the wall. His king sized bed looked extremely inviting but Lacey knew that laying in his bed was a terrible idea; she didn't trust herself to get back out of it.

She took a peek in the bathroom too. Danny had a sprawling spa tub and a rainfall shower. Lacey sighed softly; Danny's place was so much better than her cruddy little apartment at school.

Clasping her hands behind her back, Lacey smiled gently at the handsome young man with her, "What's next?"

"Well the guest rooms and my music room are on the next floor, or we can see the patio."

A rumble of thunder filled their ears and Lacey ran over to Danny's window, "Uh-oh. Tara did say it was going to rain." She stepped away from the window, resisting the urge to pout, "I'd better go. I don't want to have to drive in a rainstorm."

Though Danny didn't agree with her, he nodded anyway, following her back out into the hallway.

_'I want to spend more time with her.'_ Though Danny felt childish for his thoughts, he truly didn't want Lacey to leave. They were finally speaking to each other again and he wanted...

Well, he wasn't exactly sure what he wanted but if it involved spending more time with her, then he was perfectly okay with that.

Lacey made it to the front door before he had. They were both so lost in their thoughts that they didn't notice the pouring rain outside.

"Oh nooo!" Lacey cried throwing the front door open. Danny walked up behind her, looking over her shoulder.

"You left your window down?"

"I cracked them so the car didn't get too hot! Shit!"

Danny laughed, amused at the situation, "Nicely done, Ms. Intern."

Lacey glared at him, more worried about the inside of her car, "Danny! You're not helping!"

Shaking his head, Danny walked over to a closet and grabbed an umbrella, "Give me your keys, I'll go roll them up."

Lacey blanched, "A-Are you sure? It's raining cats and dogs out there! I can do it. What if you get sick or something?"

"Lacey, calm down. I'm not gonna melt." With a reassuring smile, Danny held his hand out expectantly.

Sighing in a mixture of relief and worry, Lacey handed over the keys, "They're automatic so you can get them from either-"

"You know, I'm only walking, what? Five feet? I'll be okay, I promise."

Lacey nodded and held the door open for him. Though his feet and shoulders ended up getting a little wet, Danny was back in the house without a hitch.

"See?"

Lacey took her keys back, a grateful smile spilling over her features, "Thank you so much."

"Are you going to try and wait out the rain?"

"Would you mind?"

"Nope. I'm perfectly okay with that." Danny said, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. He resisted the urge to do a victory fist pump. "So, what kind of movies do you like?"

End Chapter 4


	5. Lesson 5

Music Management 101

By: Sailorjj07

Lesson 5. Start the Show

A/n: Whoooooooooooooo~! I'm pretty darn excited for this chapter! It's about to get a little steamy, XP Thank you for all your lovely reviews!

Also, sorry that it's taking me so long to write the chapter: I recently moved and my laptop is broken, so I'm now writing almost exclusively on my smartphone. Le sigh.

Disclaimer: I do not own!

"Talking"

_'Thinking'_

**Actions**

(Me!)

Lacey shot up from her position on Danny's couch. The room was cast in an eerie blue light, and it was quiet; she could hear Danny's soft breathing beside her. Lacey rubbed her eyes and tried to adjust to the darkness, realizing that she and Danny never finished the movie they had watched.

More like the movie had watched them.

She slowly stood up from the couch, being as careful as she could not to wake up the sleeping male beside her. Despite what Danny had told her, she was sure that he was absolutely exhausted. She probably wasn't half as tired as he was, but Danny's couch was too comfortable, his presence beside her too warm… she had been lulled to sleep by the steady sound of rain falling and soft voices in the background.

Smiling gently to herself, Lacey grabbed her purse from the kitchen counter and quietly made her way down the stairs. Slipping on her shoes, she silently opened the door, locked it, and got in her car.

"Great, it's only 9." Lacey breathed a sigh of relief when she glanced at the time. No matter what she thought personally, she just didn't think it was very professional to fall asleep at Danny's house, especially when she was supposed to be running an errand. She hoped that she wouldn't get in trouble for being there almost all day.

Turning up the radio, Lacey made the 45 minute drive back to her Dad's apartment in the heart of the city. He was on a summer trip with his boyfriend, so Lacey didn't have to worry about waking him up when she got home.

"Heyyyy Bruno~!" Lacey cried, as she stepped through the front door. Hearing her voice, an adorable puppy barked happily, immediately licking her feet. Lacey knelt down to pet the cheerful creature and make sure he had eaten.

"Oooh wow, someone ate a lot today! I'm sorry I left you alone for such a long time." Pouring more dog food into the bowl, Lacey laughed as the chocolate colored puppy barked in excitement.

Their playtime was interrupted by the sound of her text message ringtone. Lacey reached into her purse, wondering who could be sending her a text at 10 in the evening. She stared at the unfamiliar phone number, opening up the message.

?:_ I think you took something that belongs to me._

Lacey blinked at her phone. The only place she had been today was at Danny's, so the number messaging her had to be him. Did she accidentally leave something of his in her car?

Sitting on a bar stool, Lacey put her elbows up on the counter, texting him back.

Me: _Oh? What's that?_

Her phone beeped almost immediately. Staring at the screen, Lacey erupted into a fit of giggles. Bruno stared up at her, tilting his head at the loud sound.

Danny: _My heart…_

Me:_ LMAO. Laaaaaaaaaaaammmmmmmmeeeeeeeee._

Danny: _LOL. Do I get points for trying? :)_

Stepping down from the bar stool, Lacey grabbed a cup of noodles from the cabinet and heated up water in her father's electric kettle. She poured the hot water in the premade cup, and texted Danny back.

Me: _Three points to Gryffindor, XP_

Danny: _I didn't take you for the Harry Potter type, Ms. Porter._

Lacey giggled again, taking her cup of noodles and grabbing a bottle of water out of the fridge. She walked into her bedroom, leaving the door open for Bruno, in case he wanted to sleep in the room with her.

Me: _Well… you never asked?_

Danny: _What else do you like?_

She pondered on that question for a while, then decided she didn't need to give an answer that was too complex.

Me: _Ice cream, puppies, the Hunger Games, Johnny Depp. Guys with long hair, XP_

Danny: _Ooooooohhh? Tell me more about that last part!_

Me: _Can't. Work in the am. Goodnight~!_

Danny: _Boooo. Sweet Dreams, Lacey._

Lacey snickered as she put her phone on the charger and finished her ramen cup. She slurped down the warm broth inside then took a large gulp of water, just as her puppy ran to the foot of her bed and barked.

"I hear you, I hear you." Lacey picked up the small creature, kissing the top of his head and sitting him on top of her bed. She started her nightly routines with Danny Desai on her mind.

**At Work, The Next Day**

"Morning Jo!" Lacey called cheerfully, as she stepped into the office the next morning. She was really in a great mood. She had gotten plenty of rest yesterday, and Danny's texts last night had made her smile.

She was glad they weren't fighting anymore.

"Whoa, Lacey! You're practically glowing today." Jo walked over with two banana nut muffins in hand, gifting one to Lacey.

"Whhhattt? I'm totally not." Lacey dismissed Jo's silly compliment, though it made her smile grow, "Maybe it's the new moisturizer I'm trying out?"

"Well whatever it is, you should keep using it! I don't think I've seen you this cheerful since we've met."

"Ah, it's just a really pretty day."

Phoebe looked over at the two, smirking knowingly, "Those are the sounds of a girl with a new boyfriend."

Jo stared at Lacey wide-eyed, sitting on the edge of the Lacey's desk, "Whoa, is it really?"

Phoebe walked over as well, eager to hear the tale as well, "Oooh, I wanna hear this."

"Guys, I do not have a new boyfriend. Where are you even getting that idea from?" Despite herself, Lacey could feel her cheeks growing warmer.

Jo and Phoebe grinned as Jo poked Lacey's cheek, "Look at that, she's blushing!"

Phoebe giggled girlishly, "Oooh, she's definitely got a new guy all right!"

"I do not! You guys!"

All three girls laughed together, just as the elevator dinged and announced the arrival of another member of their team. Tara Desai stepped onto the floor in black heels and a gray pencil skirt. She glanced at the three ladies huddled around Lacey's desk, and cleared her throat as she approached them. Giggling again, Phoebe and Jo scampered away, leaving Lacey and Tara to their own devices.

"Welcome back, Tara! How was your trip?"

"Great! We made soooo much money from this tour," Tara grinned from ear-to-ear. She loved when her artists did well. "I'm just glad that we can bring you along with us now. It'll be such a relief to have your help."

"I'll definitely do my best!" Glancing around Tara, Lacey's gaze flicked to the elevator. Usually when Tara arrived at the offices, Danny was right behind her. Was he coming in with her today?

"Good. You'll be flying out with us tomorrow."

Lacey's thoughts of Danny came to a screeching halt at Tara's words, "T-Tomorrow?! I mean I knew it would be soon, but-"

"Well we got your passport yesterday, so there's no time like the present, right? Don't sound so nervous - you'll do fine."

"Where are we headed to?"

"Dallas, Texas! I've heard the barbeque is great out there, so I'm pretty excited." Tara licked her lips just thinking about the delicious foods she was going to fill her belly with, "Have you ever traveled to Texas before?"

"I can't say I have. Is there anything specific I need to bring?"

"Lots of shorts. It'll be scorching out there."

"Hahah, I can swing that. How long will we be there?"

"Pack for three days. Actually, you know what?" Tara turned in Jo's direction, "Jo! What are you and Phoebe doing around lunch time?"

"Tyler has a photo shoot and- Hold on, let me check." Jo looked down at the calendar on her desk, making sure she had all of Tyler's plans written down, before focusing her attention back on Tara, "What's up?"

"You, Phoebe, and Lacey take my card and get her some clothes."

"Wait, what?" Lacey stared up wide-eyed at Tara, surprised to hear the words coming out of her mouth. She was going to get new clothes?

"Honey, you're rolling with a star now. Not to say you look frumpy, because you certainly dress well on your own, but we need you in something… more. Don't worry though; this won't come out of your paycheck." Tara said, digging in her purse for a credit card. She handed the card to Lacey, and patted her hand. "So you guys work a half day and then go get yourself something pretty to wear. Make sure you get a formal dress too! I don't know if you'll need it right this second, but I'm sure we'll need one before this internship is over."

Lacey stood up, feeling overwhelmed for just a second. She took Tara's hand and gave her the brightest smile she could manage, "Thank you. Thank you very much. I'm going to work hard to be deserving of everything that you've done for me."

Tara returned the gesture, patting the girl's hand, "Oh, you've already done well. It was a pleasant surprise to see just how well managed Danny's schedule has become since you've taken it over!"

Lacey's dimples appeared in her cheeks and the three other women in the room cooed.

"Ahhh, you're just so cute!" Phoebe cried, running over and hugging Lacey.

Today was definitely a good day.

**After Lunch**

"I can't believe Tara is so trusting," Lacey exclaimed, as she browsed through the racks in front of her.

"Haha, I guess it doesn't shock me at all anymore! I've known Tara since I was a little girl - she always spoiled Danny and me rotten." Jo held a dress up against Lacey's body, frowned, and put it back on the rack.

"Well I'm not used to it either, and I've only been here 6 months longer than you have." Phoebe said, draping three dresses and a skirt across Lacey's arm.

Lacey nodded appreciatively; the garments were good choices.

"Jo, how did you and Danny meet?"

Jo's pretty face scrunched up in thought for a moment, "Honestly, I don't really remember. Danny and I have been around each other since we were babies. Our parents grew up together. He's basically my brother from another mother." Jo giggled, "For the longest time, I thought that meant we were destined for each other, but as I got older, the thought of it seriously grossed me out!"

"Heh, I'd commit incest with that man in a heartbeat," Phoebe whispered to her two companions darkly.

Jo made a gagging noise as Lacey burst into laughter, "Ew, Phebs! Gross!"

"Have you seen your play-brother's face? He is haaaaaawwwwttt. Don't deny."

Jo just shook her head and rolled her eyes, "Lacey, don't listen to her. She talks a great game but she's never going to act on it."

"I totally would!" Phoebe cried, though her giggles betrayed her.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever you say!" Jo looped her arm with Lacey's free arm, "Let's go to that shoe store next. Can't get new clothes without at least a pair of shoes."

Lacey still couldn't believe how lucky she was.

**Later**

Lacey rushed through the airport terminal, the wheels of her carry-on squeaking as they slid along the tile. Since Dallas had a high chance of bad weather, Tara had called her at 7 pm to let her know they were getting on a late night red-eye flight.

Lacey rounded the corner, arriving near the flight gate when she saw Danny, sitting in a chair with his head down. He wore a grey beanie on top of his beautiful wavy hair with a black, long sleeve sweater and a light weight, grey scarf around his neck. He had a pair of blue and white headphones over his ears and several people sitting around him. As if he could feel Lacey's gaze on him, Danny looked up, a crooked smile spreading across his lips. Lacey released a sigh of relief that she didn't realize she was holding.

Danny walked over to her and covered her hand with his own, taking the handle of the carry-on from her, "Lacey, you okay? You look a little...?"

"Rushed? I was worried I'd be late."

"Nope, you're early!" Danny led Lacey to the chair he had been sitting in, before having a seat next to her, "Aunt Tara hasn't even gotten here yet."

Lacey leaned back against the chair, stretching her hands over her head. Danny watched her silently when Kyle Masterson cleared his throat, grabbing their attention.

"Oh crap. Sorry Kyle," Danny chuckled, nodding his head in his bodyguard's direction, "Lacey, this is Kyle Masterson, Jo's dad and my chief of security. He makes sure I don't get kidnapped."

Kyle stood up and walked over to shake Lacey's hand, a kind smile spreading across his face, "You'd be surprised how much a pervert is worth on eBay these days."

Lacey's warm laughter filled the air, "Well please keep making sure Danny doesn't get shipped off to a creepy cat lady. I'm Lacey Porter, the new intern."

Nodding curtly, Kyle went back to his seat across the aisle.

"Hmmm who else should I introduce you too?" Danny scanned the faces of people around him, his gaze falling on a curly haired young man in a corner. "Oh, that guy over the with the super huge headphones? That's the sound guy, Rico."

Lacey nodded watching as Rico typed away on his laptop, his focus completely on his work.

"Everyone else is going to meet us at the hotel tomorrow."

"Okay cool."

Lacey reached into her large purse for a set of headphones, shuffling through papers and various items.

"This is your first time going to my concert, right?" Danny asked, his dark eyes following her movements.

Lacey halted in her search, for only a second, "Well technically I'll be working the concert, but-"

"If this is your first concert, you absolutely have to watch." Danny grasped Lacey's hand to ensure that he had her attention. "I'll give you the best seat in the house. Promise."

"Danny-"

"I won't take no for an answer. Watch my concert tomorrow night."

Lacey sighed, swayed by the puppy dog look in his eyes.

"Fine," she said, removing her hands from his and lifting up a single finger, "On one condition."

Danny nodded eagerly, smiling like a kid in a candy store, "Name your price, Ms. Porter."

"You have to let me work up until showtime. Uninterrupted, no distractions, no pranks, or sabotage."

"Pranks? Sabotage? If I didn't know any better, it almost sounds like you don't trust me!"

Lacey rolled her eyes, crossing her arms under her chest. She eyed him warily, though there was a smile in her eyes, "That's exactly what it sounds like."

"Awwwww, is it really that hard to trust a face like-"

"NOW BOARDING FLIGHT 3305 TO DALLAS. FIRST CLASS PASSENGERS PLEASE LINE UP FOR BOARDING!"

Both Danny and Lacey stared at one another before Lacey gasped, "Danny, where's Tara?!"

Danny smirked as he stood up, gathering both his and Lacey's belongings, "She'll be here in 5... 4... 3... 2-"

As if summoned out of thin air, Tara Desai came whirling around the corner, a stylish suitcase in tow.

"Danny!"

Danny gave Lacey a conspiratorial grin before turning to his aunt with a stern look on his face.

"Aunt Tara, aren't you pushing your arrival a little close?"

Tara rolled her eyes, giving her nephew a not so gentle push, "Ahhh, we don't have time for you to fuss at me! Get in line."

Danny chuckled and walked over to the stewardess that was going to take his ticket, with Lacey and Tara not too far behind him.

**The Next Night, at the Concert**

She was nervous. Lip biting, hand trembling nervous.

Lacey took a deep breath and tried to focus her attention on the small device in her hands. There were just so many buttons on the damn thing!

Finally managing to turn on the radio and fit the tiny earpiece in her ear, Lacey turned to watch Danny interact with the ladies of his hair and makeup team. His stylist walked by every once in a while to hold up a shirt or accessory against his arm, while the two other women practically fawned over him.

Danny felt Lacey's eyes on him from the other side of the room. His own dark gaze fell on her, and their eyes met, even though Danny was in the middle of a conversation with another person.

"Hey Lacey, can you hear me?" Lacey bit her bottom lip and diverted her gaze from Danny as Rico's voice buzzed in her ear.

"Yeah, I can hear you just fine."

"Great. This channel is for you and Tara, so you won't have to listen to my guys yelling all night."

"Cool."

Lacey turned her back on Danny and his styling team, fiddling with the channels on the radio. "They say that talking to yourself isn't healthy." Lacey jumped when Danny's fingers softly touched her back, startling her.

"Geez Danny! You're always sneaking up on me!" She cried, glaring at him. Danny just laughed and took her hand in his.

"You're done working, aren't you?" Even though Danny knew Lacey had completed her tasks (he had asked his aunt already), he wanted to make sure that he kept his end of the bargain.

"Yep, I'm finished!" Lacey replied and to further demonstrate, she breathed a somewhat shaky sigh of relief.

"Good. Follow me." Pulling her gently, Danny lead her to a chair he had strategically placed right at the edge of the backstage area "Sit here." He said, pointing at the seat. Lacey sat down, realizing the single chair gave her a great view of the stage while still hiding her among the dark curtains.

"Won't people see me? Won't I get in the way?" Lacey questioned, as a group of dancers walked by them.

"No and no. Do you think I'd just put you in some random place?" Danny smiled, placing his hands on Lacey's shoulders. He looked her straight in the eyes, making her heartbeat sputter in her chest. Lacey found warmth and a bit of something else, mixed in his gaze. "Just sit here and enjoy the show."

Nodding mutely, Lacey bit on her bottom lip as Danny's hands trailed down her shoulders to take both of her hands in his own.

"Oh man. I'm actually a little bit nervous now," he blurted out and Lacey nodded her head again, a quivering laugh tumbling from her lips.

"Me too," Lacey replied, causing a smile to spill across Danny's face.

"That might be a good thing." Releasing her hands, Danny stepped away from her warm smile and flipped the switch to turn his microphone on. The dancers that had been waiting near the curtains ran out onto the stage as the bass began bumping through the speakers. Danny started walking out towards the stage, and then suddenly froze, mid-step.

"Danny…?" The way he had halted abruptly caused Lacey to stand up. Had he suddenly become sick? Was he having a case of stage fright?

But the answer to Lacey's question was much simpler than that. Danny spun around, closing the gap between them in two quick strides. He cradled her face in his hands and stole her breath away in a soft, lip-searing kiss that made Lacey melt. It ended just as quickly as it had began, and the look Danny was giving her made her entire body warm.

"Watch me," he murmured huskily, and to Lacey's surprise his sensual voice echoed throughout the concert hall. The screams and cheers of his fans filled the arena and Danny released her, a devilish smirk on his face as he ran out onto the stage.

Touching her hand to her lips, Lacey practically collapsed into her chair and watched Danny's concert with an unwavering gaze.

End Chapter 5


	6. Lesson 6

Music Management 101

By: Sailorjj07

Lesson 6: The Question

A/n: Hello lovelies~! I have great news! I bought a new computer so that means I don't have to type everything from my cell phone anymore, whooooo! As a reward, here's a fabulous chapter for all of you to enjoy! I was originally going to make this a single chapter, but a lot had to happen, so it's actually going to be split into two.

Also, a guest comment asked me for my Tumblr. Feel free to add me/follow me on there, my name is ladysuki1289.

Disclaimer: I do not own!

"Talking"

_'Thinking'_

**Actions**

(Me!)

Lacey felt like her blood was on fire. True to her word, she sat and watched Danny's concert in its entirety, and learned why they called him "Adonis". Danny's show was hot from start to finish. His show began at a reasonable enough pace, but turned to steamy and sensual in two seconds flat. She never expected to see Danny in so many different costumes, and at many times, shirtless.

And the worst thing was, she was perfectly okay with everything.

Now, Danny was filling her brain with all sorts of horrible thoughts, fueled by the lyrics whispered from his full lips and the terribly sexy faces he made on stage. The heat was turned up to 120 degrees Fahrenheit and Lacey didn't know if she wanted a fan, some ice water, or a priest to expel the evil spirits that were making her knees weak.

"Wow, he's going all out today." Tara Desai stepped up behind Lacey's chair, shaking her from her reprieve. Danny was singing his last song, and thanking his loyal fans for another sold out crowd. Lacey stood up quickly, suddenly feeling very awkward next to Danny's aunt.

"Oh, you can sit back down! He's going to go back out for an encore and that's when I'll put you back to work," Tara winked at Lacey, and without thinking, the younger girl sank back into the chair, her entire gaze captivated by Danny.

"He's…. a really good performer," Lacey murmured, not once looking away from him. Beside her, Tara nodded, then laughed at herself when she remembered that Lacey wasn't really paying attention to her.

"Well of course he is! I don't take on just anyone, you know! He may be my nephew, but I made sure he worked his adorable little butt off!"

Lacey nodded, _'He certainly does have an awesome bu-'_

Shaking her head and halting that train of thought, Lacey turned back towards Tara, "How long has he been singing?"

"Hah, since he could talk. Maybe even before that. His mom swears he used to sing along with the radio as a baby."

"Awwww, I bet that was adorable!"

"Of course it was! Now if it's one thing he didn't have to work hard for, it's that beautiful face of his! Those are Desai genes at work." Tara laughed to herself, patting Lacey's shoulder. "I'll need you to take a couple bottles of water to Danny's dressing room. He's usually sweating buckets up on stage and we have to replace those fluids as soon as possible."

Lacey nodded and stood up from her chair. Even though it wouldn't take her long to move the water bottles to the other room, she wanted to try and catch the end of the show.

Thirty minutes later, Lacey rushed down the hallway with three bottles of water in her hands. She had been stopped by two security guards on the way, and one of them was extremely chatty. She finally managed to break away when she saw Tara and Danny sweep through the corridor, from the back of the stage to the dressing room, at the end of the hallway.

Tara was walking out of the room as Lacey walked up, "Hey, what kept you?"

"I'm so sorry, Tara. Robocop down there decided now was the perfect time to get flirty," Lacey rolled her eyes as her boss chuckled wholeheartedly.

"Southern hospitality at its finest, my dear." Tara held the door open for Lacey, and walked away, saying something about making sure the hallway was secure.

Lacey walked into the room to find Danny sitting in a leather chair with a towel over his face. His arms hung over the sides of the chair and he breathed slowly, almost as if he were sleeping. Lacey gently set the water bottles on the vanity in front of him, hoping she didn't wake him. As she crept past him to give him a few more moments of rest, Danny reached up and grabbed her wrist.

"Lacey, you're being sneaky."

Lacey frowned at Danny as he sat up, grinning warmly at her as he pulled the cool towel off of his face.

"I wasn't. I thought you were sleeping." She said, biting on the inside of her cheek as she pouted.

"Nope, I was waiting for you." Pulling her closer to him, Danny sat on the edge of the chair, positioning Lacey so that their knees were touching. "What did you think of my show?"

At the mention of his concert, Lacey felt a flood of heat rush to her face, and her pulse quickening. As every thought she had during his performance came to the forefront of her mind, she diverted her gaze immediately.

"Oh?" Danny took note of the sudden changes in her demeanor and stood up, to get a better look at her face, "Look at that. You're blushing. So that means you liked it, right?"

Lacey took a step away from him to gather her thoughts before she spoke. To her annoyance, Danny took a step closer, backing her into the vanity.

His fingertips brushed against her cheek, "You're warm."

Lacey said nothing, trying to fight the rising heat in her stomach.

Danny's fingers trailed from her cheek to her neck, "Your pulse is…" He smirked, leaning into her, "Lacey-lingerie, what's the matter?"

Her eyes narrowed. He knew exactly what was wrong with her. Steely brown eyes glared at the smug look on his face, "You."

Danny held his hand to his heart dramatically, "Me? Now what on Earth did I do to-"

Irritated by his ridiculous banter, Lacey wrapped her arms around his neck and crashed her lips on his, in an effort to shut him up and perhaps cool off some of the heat that was enveloping her.

Except kissing him only made it worse.

Danny responded to her mouth immediately, entangling one hand in her silky hair and placing another on her waist. Though Lacey had initiated the kiss, Danny soon gained control, running his tongue along the seam of her lips, seeking entrance. As her lips parted underneath his, he quickly wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her up onto the vanity behind her, not once breaking the kiss.

Her hands found his thick locks as Danny pressed closer to her, devouring her mouth with his own. Just when Danny was moving his hands to touch her tantalizing thighs, his hand bumped into a water bottle, and like dominoes, the whole pile of them fell to the floor.

They both separated with a start, turning to look at the plastic bottles that had fallen to the ground. Leaning their foreheads together, the two of them laughed sheepishly, their breath mingling.

Through sheer forced of will, Danny moved away from Lacey's warmth, and helped her down from her perch, "We should probably go. Aunt Tara will be looking for us soon."

Lacey crinkled her nose up at Danny, removing her hands from his, "And you need to shower."

Danny laughed as he followed her out the door, "Hey! What are you trying to say, Lacey Porter?"

Lacey turned, walking backwards as a playful grin spread across her face, highlighting her dimples, "Haha, I'm saying that we need to get you back to the hotel, 'Adonis'."

Danny bit his lip, his gaze darkening, "So you did like my show!"

Giggling to herself, Lacey turned her back to Danny, continuing down the hall, "It was all right."

**A Week Later**

Lacey fell onto her bed, kicking her feet in the air as she hummed along to her Father's IPod in the kitchen.

Her puppy barked at her feet, hoping to be picked up.

"Bruno, you spoiled brat," Lacey said, giggling as she placed him beside her on the bed.

At that moment, Samuel Porter poked his head into his daughter's room.

"Hey baby, you ready to eat?"

"Laccccceeeyyyy, come have dinner with us! Your Father made your favorite~!" Came a cheerful cry from the kitchen.

Lacey grinned at her dad, climbing out of her bed, "Wow, someone's excited!"

"He's just happy you're here, baby. I am too."

"I'm glad to be here," Lacey replied, and she truly meant that. Though her parents' divorce was a little hard on her and her younger sister, Clara, at first, once they had learned the reason for the split, it got much easier.

"Well wash your paws and come join us, otherwise I might have to beat James over the head to stop all that yelling."

"I heard you!"

Her Dad rolled his eyes playfully and stepped out of her bedroom, leaving Lacey to go wash her hands. On her way into the bathroom, her cell phone began ringing. She smiled to herself as Danny's name flashed across the screen.

"Can I help you, Mr. Desai?"

"Ooooh, could you call me that again?" Danny's playful voice flitted in her ear and her mind immediately went to the gutter. Biting her lip, Lacey leaned against the door, deciding it was best to ignore her train of thought.

"What's up, Danny?"

"Have you eaten yet?" Lacey tried to guess where Danny was calling her from. It was quiet in the background, but she knew he wasn't at the company anymore. Lacey heard the sound of someone honking a horn and realized that Danny was probably in the car.

"I'm actually about to have dinner now."

"Lacey, you okay in there, baby doll?" Sam's fiance, James, had peeked his head into Lacey's bedroom to see what was taking her so long.

Both caller and receiver froze; Danny slammed on his brakes suddenly, and then Lacey heard him curse softly.

'_Is she with a guy right now?' _Danny heard the car behind him honk repeatedly at his sudden, unwarranted stop in the middle of the road. He ignored them.

"I'm fine, James! I'll be there in a minute," Lacey tried to keep the laughter out of her voice, but it was proving a losing battle, "Danny, you okay?"

"I'm fine!" He said, cursing under his breath again, "I didn't mean to bother you while you're busy." Danny hoped he sounded nonchalant and not… as disappointed as he actually felt.

"I don't think dinner with my Dad and his fiancee counts as busy."

"Ahhhh," the twinge of jealousy Danny had felt lightened a bit. The man in the background had probably been her father.

"Yes, he and James just came back from a trip in Europe, so they wanted to have a family dinner."

"James? Wait, so is James your-?"

"My Dad's fiancee. Yes," Lacey giggled again, as if she could see the cogs turning in Danny's brain.

Danny's sigh of relief flooded her ear, and Lacey felt her cheeks warm again.

"So what are you doing after dinner?"

"Going to bed? I have to keep an eye on a famous singer who can't seem to do anything for himself."

Lacey could practically hear Danny's smile over the phone, "Are you calling me a brat?"

"No, of course not!"

"Well since I can't do anything on my own, I think it's best that you come with me to get dessert, right? Who knows what havoc I could get into!"

Lacey cradled the phone against her ear with her shoulder, turning on the water and washing her hands, "Hmmmm, what kind of desert?"

"Well I distinctly remember someone saying she liked… Ah, what was it again?"

Lacey dried off her hands, not giving him any hints to their previous conversation.

"I remember now. Ice cream, puppies, Johnny Depp, and oh~! Me."

"I think the phrase I used was 'guys with long hair', Danny."

"That'd still be me, wouldn't it?" Danny's amused chuckle made her smile as well. Bruno barked at her heels as she walked down the hallway towards the dining room.

"Give me 45 minutes. I'll text you my address."

"Awesome."

After a pleasant meal with her father and James, Lacey hurried out of the building with her purse and cell phone in hand. Danny stood there, leaned up against a sleek, black sports car with a lazy grin on his face.

The moment he saw her, his smile grew, if that were possible.

"I think you get more beautiful every time I see you." He said, as he opened the car door for her.

The smile she rewarded him with was bright enough to light up the entire block, "Laying it on a little thick, aren't you?"

Closing her door smoothly, Danny hopped in the car too, "But I mean it."

And with the way his dark eyes glittered when he looked at her, Lacey found that she actually believed him.

"So what sort of place are we going to?"

"It's great, I promise."

* * *

><p>Danny took Lacey to an old-fashioned family owned ice cream parlor, where families and friends were savoring sweet frozen delights along marble bars that lined floor to ceiling windows.<p>

"Oh my gosh!" Lacey gushed, falling in love with the little shop instantly. Pink and white striped wallpaper helped with the shoppe's vintage feel, along with huge glass jars filled with candies, toppings, and other treats.

"Sit here, and I'll go order. Any requests?"

"I'll let you surprise me," Lacey replied, spinning around on the bar stool. Danny chuckled at her cheerful attitude and left her to go stand in line.

In the meantime, Lacey checked her phone for any messages. She grinned at a text message from her college roommate, Sarita. Sarita had sent her a photo from the beach, in a bright pink two piece bikini.

_Sarita: Miss you, bitch~! The sand, sun, and sexy guys ain't the same without you, Lace-face, 3 3_

Laughing loudly, Lacey texted her back just as Danny walked up with a huge, boat shaped glass filled with enough sugar to make Lacey foam at the mouth. The ice cream sundae was huge, boasting 4 scoops of ice cream and generous amounts of hot fudge and strawberry syrup.

"Is that pound cake at the bottom? Holy crap, Danny, this thing is huge!"

"The menu said it could feed up to three people, but looking at it now, it's definitely more like four," Danny scratched the back of his head sheepishly, before handing Lacey her very own spoon. "You think you could tackle this with me?"

"I'll have to use my special dessert compartment, but I think we can manage," and to prove her words, Lacey took a heaping spoonful of the ice cream and syrup and placed it in her mouth, "Yuuuuuummmmm."

"A dessert compartment, huh? Tell me more," Danny inquired, taking his own healthy spoonful of smooth sugary sweetness.

"Haha, it's a running joke in my family. They say I have a special black hole in my stomach for sweets and junk food. Clara hates me; she says if she ate half as much junk as me, we'd have to roll her around in a wheelbarrow."

"Clara?" Danny asked, watching as Lacey licked a little whipped cream off of her fingers. He quickly averted his gaze - that was very dangerous territory.

"Oh, that's my younger sister. She's a senior in high school." Lacey spooned another generous helping into her mouth, "Actually, I'm probably going to have to take off next month to go to her graduation."

Danny nodded, helping himself to a couple more bites of ice cream before he put his spoon down and turned to face Lacey. With one glance in his direction, Lacey realized the conversation had taken a bit of a serious turn, and put her spoon down.

"So um…" Danny found that he was actually a bit nervous to tell Lacey his thoughts. This was a new feeling for him, and he hated it.

'_I feel like an idiot. Why is it so hard to speak when she looks at me like that?'_

Taking a slow breath, Danny tried again, "I'm sure you're wondering why I asked you here today…"

Lacey bit her bottom lip, trying to read the expression on his face, "Well no, not exactly… Should I?"

'_Did he not just want to see me?' _Lacey wondered if she had just been fooling herself, then.

"No no, that's not what I-" Danny paused, sighing as he ran his fingers through his hair, "Let me try that again. I have to go the Music Awards Gala in Las Vegas this weekend. I know that you'll be going with us, since well, it's your job but I was wondering if…" At this point, Danny had reached forward, taking her smaller hands between his own, "Will you be my date?"

Lacey could feel her entire body growing warm from the roots of her hair to the tips of her toes. The intense stare that Danny was giving her made her feel like he was waiting for her answer with bated breath.

"Yes," she said instantly, and the way Danny's eyes lit up was enough to make her want to say it again, "I would love to."

"Great! Thank you so much! I promise you'll have so much fun! I won't leave your side for a second." Danny gushed, his words spilling out faster than Lacey had ever heard.

She held up a hand to halt Danny's oncoming speech, "Wait, Danny."

Running his thumb along the back of her hand, he nodded again, "What's on your mind?"

"Why me?"

Danny stopped his gentle caress to lean further into Lacey's personal space. The dark look in his eyes reminded her of the first time he kissed her, and she took a shaky breath to calm herself down.

"I don't think I should… answer that here."

"Cliff Notes version?"

Danny's amused laughter was enough to take them both out of the haze of desire that had suddenly filled the air, "You're smart, beautiful, and really fun to be around."

"Oooooh, I like the way you think, Danny. Feel free to continue at any time."

As they laughed together, Danny picked up his spoon and resumed the take-down of their large dessert. Lacey took that as her cue to start eating again too.

"So is there anything in particular I should wear?"

'_Nothing...You should wear-! Ahhhhh, Danny, stop!' _Mentally chiding himself, Danny shrugged, noncommittally, "I didn't have anything in mind in particular. It's formal, of course, but I'm sure Aunt Tara and Jo will get something amazing."

"What's your favorite color?" Lacey asked, suddenly and Danny stopped eating to look into her beautiful brown eyes. At the moment, chocolate was his favorite color, but he didn't speak those opinions out loud.

"Blue? Or maybe gray… Are you going to pick a dress based on the color I tell you?"

"Mayyyybbbbeee?" Lacey drawled, twirling a spoon in the air.

"Hahaha, Lacey, you'll look good in anything. Don't worry about it too much."

Lacey nodded, though she was already running through potential outfits in her mind. She'd have to ask Jo and Phoebe to help her figure something out, but one thing was for sure: Lacey Porter was sure to bring her A-game.

End Chapter 6


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